A nurse is caring for a client. Exhibits For each client finding, click to specify if the finding is consistent with Parkinson's disease, stroke, or multiple sclerosis. Each finding can support more than 1 disease process.

Facial rigidity: Facial rigidity and drooling is highly characteristic of Parkinson’s disease due to rigidity of facial muscles and impaired autonomic control of saliva. These signs are not typical in stroke or MS. Speech: Speech is slow and slurred, Parkinson’s disease causes slow, monotone, and slurred speech due to bradykinesia. Stroke can impair speech from focal lesions (e.g., dysarthria), and MS may involve scanning or slurred speech due to cerebellar involvement. Muscle movements: Bilateral resting tremors and stiffness, resting tremors progressing from unilateral to bilateral, combined with muscle stiffness, directly supports Parkinson’s. These are not resting tremors from MS (which are usually intention tremors) and are not characteristic of stroke unless from residual spasticity post-CVA. Orientation status: Disoriented to date and time, Parkinson’s can cause cognitive decline over time. Disorientation also appears in stroke with cerebral involvement and during MS exacerbations, although in this case, the gradual timeline aligns best with Parkinson’s. Ambulation pattern: The hallmark Parkinsonian gait involves shuffling steps with reduced arm swing and festination. MS may cause unsteady or spastic gait, but the described pattern—specifically “shuffles their feet”—aligns with Parkinson’s. This is not a classic post-stroke hemiparetic or spastic gait.